Los Lobos
Wolf Tracks: The Best of Los Lobos

Los Lobos may be the most underappreciated act in America, but its fans have
reason to be concerned considering that, for nearly four years, the ensemble has
been stuck in a relative holding pattern. Although its most recent studio effort
The Ride was, at times, quite brilliant, it also essentially was a hybrid
that, despite its new material, imaginatively split the difference between being
a career retrospective and a tribute album. Taken on its own, the set was hardly
cause for alarm, but given that the group subsequently issued a concert
collection (Live at the Fillmore) as well as a greatest hits package (Wolf
Tracks: The Best of Los Lobos), it might be time for the bandís following to
become a little nervous.

For the record, Wolf Tracks is the third survey of Los Lobosí output
to be released in the past 13 years. Yet, where the prior compilations (Just
Another Band from East L.A. and El Cancionero: Mas y Mas) tended to
be a tad overstuffed for casual consumption, this newly commissioned compendium
weighs in at a slimmer 20 tracks. One certainly can quibble about the omission
of a few pivotal moments from the ensembleís career ó most notably its cover of
the Grateful DeadísBertha, which introduced its music to a whole new
audience ó but in the end, thereís no disputing Wolf Tracksí
effectiveness. Not only does the set demonstrate the full range of material
within Los Lobosí eclectic arsenal, but by presenting its songs in chronological
order, the collection wonderfully highlights the progression of the bandís
development.

A distinctive fusion of Mexican folk, Texas-bred blues, and í50s rock (ŗ la Ritchie Valens) consistently has formed the underpinnings of Los Lobosí
compositions. So widespread are its influences, however, that the group has been
able to assemble an array of sonic architectures that have grown increasingly
experimental. In shifting from its simplistic early forays to its later, more
textured sojourns, Wolf Tracks beautifully illuminates the path that Los
Lobos has traversed for more than 30 years, and the addition of the previously
unreleased Border Town Girl, which was culled from the sessions for
The Neighborhood, is merely the icing on the cake.

Wolf Tracks: The Best of Los Lobos is available
from Barnes & Noble. To order, Click Here!